The present invention relates to a boat cover and especially to a boat cover which covers a boat when the boat is hoisted with a boat hoist.
In the past, it has been common to provide boat decks and boat houses for the maintaining of boats when the boats are not being used. Typically, such boat docks have an open framework having a roof mounted thereover and may be provided with sidewalls so that the boat can be driven directly into the boat house. It is common to provide a boat hoist or winching mechanism for attaching ropes or cables to the boat and then elevating the boat out of the water supported on the framework beneath the roof. It is also old to provide canvas or flexible covers for a boat so that the cover can be drawn over the top of the boat and held therearound with draw ropes at the peripheral edge thereof for retaining the lower edge portion of the canvas in abutting relationship to the sides of the boat.
Boat covers typically cover boats when they are out of water, such as on trailers, and even when they are in the water and moored for extended periods of time to protect the tops of the boats. Some boat owners also cover their boats when they are not going to be used for a period of time even though they are kept within the boat house and elevated above the water under the roof of the boat house. This is to prevent an accumulation of dirt, moisture, and the like when the boat is not going to be used for any extended period of time. However, this becomes a difficult operation to attach and remove the boat cover since the boat is being suspended from ropes or cables during the time the boat is being covered. The absence of a separate cover over the boat will allow dirt, insects, and the like to accumulate on the interior of the boat and sun damage to the outside and inside of the boat. The present invention is directed towards a boat cover which automatically covers the boat whenever the boat is hoisted therebeneath and automatically raises the boat cover when the boat hoist lowers the boat into the water.
In the Downer, U.S. Pat. No. 4,019,212, a boat cover apparatus is provided which provides a manual lift system mounted to a frame for lifting a boat above the water and includes cables for attaching and lifting the boat. A boat cover is attached to a specially designed frame shaped to fit over the sides of the boat and is supported from flexible cords or cables and has a hand wench so the cover can be lowered or raised manually after the boat has been lifted. Thus, the boat is manually lifted with a manual boat hoist and then, in a separate operation, a frame having a cover attached is lowered with a separate hand wench down over the top of the boat.
In the Osborne U.S. Pat. No. 5,269,332, a retractable protective cover for boats, cars, and the like is operated with a manual wench pulling a cover through an elongated tube where it is retracted and extended for covering a car. The Faber U.S. Pat. No. 5,058,946, is a hinged trailer boat cover which has a rigid boat cover mounted to a trailer for covering the boat when towing the boat on the trailer or for storage on the trailer. The Lackovic U.S. Pat. No. 5,027,739, is a demountable cover for a boat hatchway which swings a cover on a supporting arm. The Enright U.S. Pat. No. 524,137, is a portable awning for vessels supported from a boom arm. The McGoldrick U.S. Pat. No. 1,134,630, is a life boat and launching mechanism therefor.
A boat hoist and cover assembly apparatus and method are taught in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,501 for a Boat Hoist Cover Assembly. This prior patent uses a boat hoist having a rotatable lift shaft having a plurality of ropes or cables coiled therearound in one direction of rotation and extending therefrom for removably coupling to a boat for lifting a boat by the rotation of the hoist lift shaft. A boat cover has a plurality of cables or ropes attached thereto and coiled around the boat hoist lift shaft in a second direction of rotation from that of the boat hoist ropes to thereby lower the boat cover when hoisting the boat and to raise the boat cover when lowering the boat so that a boat cover covers a boat whenever the boat is hoisted by the boat hoist. The method uses the selected boat hoist and cover assembly and rotates the boat hoist shaft to lift an attached boat while lowering the boat cover onto the boat.
In contrast, the present invention provides a boat cover that lowers onto the boat when lifting the boat with a hoist and raises the boat cover when lowering the boat to avoid the complexities of covering a boat in a boat house when storing the boat.
A boat cover for a boat hoist includes a framework shaped to be attached to a plurality of pilings of a boat hoist above or beneath the boat hoist. A fabric boat cover has a top portion attached over the framework and a side portion extending over the sides of the framework. A plurality of cover frame members are attached to the fabric boat cover side portion in a spaced relationship to each other. A boat cover raising and lowering mechanism raises and lowers the cover side portion and has a rotatable shaft operatively rotated by a motor connected thereto. The shaft is attached to the framework beneath the fabric boat cover top portion and has a plurality of winding cords connecting at one end to the shaft for rotation therearound upon rotation of the shaft. Each winding cord is connected at the other end thereof to the bottom one of a plurality of cover frame members attached to the fabric cover side portion. At least one of the winding cords connects to a plurality of lifting cords which are in turn connected to the bottom cover frame member so that rotating the shaft in one direction will wind the plurality of winding cords thereon to raise the boat cover side portion from around a boat and rotating the shaft in the other direction will unwind the winding cords to lower the boat cover side portion along the sides of a boat hoisted therein. A plurality of winding cords includes a first winding cord wrapped around the shaft in one direction and a second winding cord wrapped around the shaft in a second direction whereby rotation of the shaft will wind or unwind the first and second winding cords simultaneously. The boat cover framework includes a perimeter frame portion and at least one cross frame member having the shaft attached thereto between a pair of journals. A plurality of pulleys direct the winding cord and lifting cords for connecting to the bottom cover frame member. The frame can be made out of metal or polymer pipe members while the fabric cover can be a generally waterproof polymer fabric.